With more than 70 percent of precincts reporting, AP called the race late Tuesday evening. The election of Philadelphia Judge Kevin Dougherty and Superior Court judges David Wecht and Christine Donohue, both of Allegheny County, would give Democrats a 5-2 majority on the state's highest appellate court.

What is the Pa. Supreme Court? What does the court do?

Although justices run partisan campaigns in their initial election, they face a nonpartisan yes-or-no retention vote every 10 years. Justices who had originally run as Republicans held the court's majority for the last six years.

Pennsylvania's Supreme Court race was the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history, according to advocacy groups that support limiting such spending, with the seven candidates raising a combined $15.8 million.

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Lynn Marks, executive director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, said she's troubled by this election's spending but hopeful that all of the judicial candidates--even the Republicans--had committed to reform.

"There is a real opportunity for the Supreme Court to move into its next chapter with three new justices out of seven," she said Tuesday night. "Every one of them touted integrity as their most important trait and they want to earn the public's confidence in the court."

Gov. Tom Wolf, in a written statement late Tuesday, said the judicial results sent a clear message.

"For the second time in the last year, the people of Pennsylvania have spoken at the ballot box and sent Harrisburg a message that they want fairness and change," he said. "I hope those serving in state government have heard the message and will join me in fighting for change that benefits every Pennsylvanian."

The highest vote-takers in the state's judicial races are marked in bold.